Prince Christian of Denmark
Birth and life: Prince Christian was born on Saturday, 15 October 2005 in Rigshospitalet, the Copenhagen University Hospital, in Copenhagen, at 1:57 am. He was healthy with an apgar score of 10 (out of 10) after 1 minute. At birth, he weighed 3.5 kg (7.7 lb) and was 51 cm (20 in) long. At noon on the day of his birth 21-gun salutes were fired from the Sixtus Battery at Holmen in Copenhagen and at Kronborg Castle to mark the birth of a royal child. At the same time, public buses and official buildings flew the Danish flag, the Dannebrog. At sunset on the same day beacon bonfires were lit all over Denmark, while Naval Home Guard vessels lit their searchlights and directed them towards the capital. A few bonfires were also lit in celebration in Australia. Brief hospitalization: Prince Christian was hospitalised briefly on 21 October 2005 because he suffered from neonatal jaundice, a usually harmless illness and a fairly common one (especially in premature births). The first photographs of the then 3-day-old boy showed a yellow tinge to his face and hands. The prince was examined by doctors and underwent blood tests, then spent time in a light box under special coloured light rays to break down the bilirubin substance which causes jaundice. His parents took him home again the same day and he made a full recovery. Name and christening Prince Christian was christened on 21 January 2006 in Christiansborg Palace Chapel by Bishop Erik Norman Svendsen. Christian has eight godparents. They are Haakon, Crown Prince of Norway, Mette-Marit, Crown Princess of Norway, Victoria, Crown Princess of Sweden, Prince Joachim of Denmark, Pavlos, Crown Prince of Greece, Jane Stephens and two friends of the couple, Jeppe Handwerk and Hamish Campbell. His forenames all have a family significance: *'Christian' is after his great-great-grandfather, Christian X of Denmark, continuing the Danish royal tradition of the heir apparent being named either Christian or Frederick. *'Valdemar' is after Valdemar IV of Denmark. It is also a common royal name. The Prince's uncle Joachim has Waldemar as one of his names. The Prince's cousin Felix, Joachim's second son, has Valdemar as one of his names. *'Henri' is after his paternal grandfather, Prince Henrik, whose given name is Henri. *'John' is after his maternal grandfather, John Donaldson. He received a number of presents on the occasion of his christening, including a pony called Flikflak from the Folketing, Denmark's national parliament. Succession and the constitution As the firstborn child of the heir apparent, Christian is second-in-line to the Danish throne; at the accession of Frederik or his premature death, Christian will become heir apparent. Since the 16th century, first-born sons of Danish monarchs have traditionally been alternately named Frederik and Christian; Queen Margrethe II, while naturally interrupting this sequence, treated herself as a "Christian" for the purposes of alternation, coming between her father, Frederick IX, and her son, Crown Prince Frederik. Prince Christian will likewise presumably be known as "King Christian XI of Denmark" (following his great-great-grandfather Christian X in that name). The possibility Mary could be expecting a female child motivated Danish politicians to consider the possibility of adopting absolute cognatic primogeniture. Formerly Denmark's throne followed Salic law; this was altered by the 1953 Act of Succession, which introduced male-preference cognatic primogeniture, which gives daughters a place in the succession, but behind their brothers. This change allowed the present Queen to become heiress-presumptive and eventually inherit the throne. While the Crown Princess was still pregnant with Christian, the Folketing began the lengthy process (which would need in the end the approval of two parliaments and a referendum) to change the Danish constitution to allow absolute cognatic primogeniture. The birth of a boy removed some urgency from this drive. On 11 September 2006, Per Stig Møller, Denmark's Minister for Foreign Affairs, formally wrote and signed a hand-written document confirming Prince Christian's place in the line of succession. The prince's full name, his dates of birth and christening, and the names of his godparents were recorded as dictated by the Royal Law of 1799. Christian Valdemar Viking In 2006 Scandinavian Airlines System was in the process of purchasing new A319 aircraft; and in Christian's honour the first of these, delivered on 8 August 2006, was named Christian Valdemar Viking. Schooling On 27 March 2007 Prince Christian started nursery school at Queen Louise's Children's House, located 35 km north of Copenhagen in Fredensborg where the Crown Prince family lives. Prince Christian walked inside accompanied by his parents and is having sessions there to aid his socialisation, according to comments made by his mother. The nursery school bears the name of Christian's ancestor Louise of Sweden. On 27 April 2011, it was announced that Prince Christian would begin his formal schooling at Trane Overgaard School in Gentofte. He began his first day of primary school on 12 August 2011. Christian was the first member of the Danish Royal Family, and first future Danish king, to attend nursery school. At the same age, the Crown Prince had a nanny at the palace. He is also the first member of the Danish Royal Family to attend a public state school. Royal duties Christian participated in his first official royal duty when he attended the opening of the new elephant house at the Copenhagen Zoo with his grandfather, Prince Henrik, who is a patron of the zoo, and who laid the foundation stone for the new elephant house in October 2006. Christian was the one who opened the elephant house by pressing a button on an interactive console. The elephants were a gift from the King and Queen of Thailand to the Queen and Prince Consort of Denmark on their last visit to Thailand. The elephant house was designed by Norman Foster and Partners. On 19 June 2010, he acted as a page boy in the wedding of his godmother, the Crown Princess of Sweden, to Daniel Westling. On 17 November 2010, he accompanied his mother and grandfather to the unveiling of a painting of Prince Ulrik of Denmark at Rosenborg Castle. Titles, styles and arms Title *'15 October 2005 – 29 April 2008:' His Royal Highness Prince Christian of Denmark *'29 April 2008 – present:' His Royal Highness Prince Christian of Denmark, Count of Monpezat His official title in Danish is Hans Kongelige Højhed Prins Christian til Danmark, Greve af Monpezat Honours and decorations *Commemorative 70th Birthday Medal of Her Majesty The Queen